Grey’s Anatomyseason 15 episode 15 is important because of its milestone nature. This episode puts the show atop the medical-drama pedestal, ahead of ER and so many other great ones in this vein. Credit has to go to Shonda Rhimes, Ellen Pompeo, and all of the longtime cast and crew members for bringing their best every week, through the good days and bad, to deliver an exceptional experience.

Of course, this episode is also important because of all of the stories that transpired throughout. It’s so interesting that this is a hospital drama and yet, for this groundbreaking episode, almost all of it was set outside the Grey Sloan. There were a few moments in the early going there and that was more or less it. Station 19 had almost as much representation here as the hospital!

To go along with this written review… Check out our video thoughts on it below! If you dig what we’ve got to say, we suggest that you subscribeto CarterMatt on YouTube right now and also view our official Grey’s Anatomy playlist. That’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss any of our videos coming up!

“We Didn’t Start the Fire” was geared mostly around a celebration for Catherine Fox, one ironically that she barely attended after coming out on the other side of the surgery. As you may recall she’s not 100% recovered, but she’s got another chance at life now thanks to Amelia, Koracick, and others. Jackson wanted to get the party together and did just that, but along the way, understandably didn’t realize that there would be so many (possible) fire-starters.

What was kinda-funny in retrospect is that this episode created so many red herrings for what could cause the place to burn down, including Maggie and Jackson’s candle tilting over or Alex’s mom putting yarn a little too close to it. It actually seems like it was putting a plastic tray in the oven (possibly the work of Meredith and DeLuca) that did the trick. Everything is okay, though; nobody’s hurt, at least as a result of that. Koracick does have a sore hand, but that’s an entirely different story.

What’s happening with Owen?

For most of the night, he was distracted and bothered by every little thing Tom Koracick did. Was it jealousy of his whirlwind relationship with Teddy? Was it the fact that he was going to get to be potentially involved in his baby’s life, right at the same time that Leo was taken away? Possibly both. We think it was just a culmination of many events — he felt like he’d given his heart and soul to have a future with Amelia and their new-found family (at least over the past seven months), only for it to be stripped from him. Owen is known for being indecisive, but he’d felt pretty sure of this — yet, there were doubts. Amelia made those doubts clear to him, as she’s understandably worried that once Teddy has that baby, he’s going to leave her and run right over to them. He may see Koracick as an obstacle.

This is why we saw Owen gathering ammunition against him, desperately seeking information to prove that he was no-bueno as a possible father figure. He spun Tom’s history with Amelia as him being opportunistic and when he told Koracick to his face that he’d be an unfit father, Koracick hit him. This is a cocky dude and almost nothing bothers him … but this does. That’s the nerve and Owen hit it.

The silver lining for Owen is that he may have a chance to be a father figure to Leo, after all. Betty’s parents returned at the end of the episode and made it clear that with their daughter’s blessing, she wanted Owen and Amelia to raise her son. She’s probably right that this is the best home for him — sure, there can be tornadoes between these two characters, but there’s also boundless love. That has to matter for something.

DeLuca didn’t see this coming…

As a matter of fact, there was no real reason for him to, other than Carina calling him earlier in the episode! The end of the installment tonight introduced you to Andrew and Carina’s father for the first time, a man who has a rather complicated history … to say the least. He’s killed patients and was able to use his connections to people in power to get away with it. Meredith knows the truth, but that doesn’t mean she was ready to wade into these messy waters. They’re still newly dating! They were still in the “let’s find a random room to make out in” part of their relationship!

DeLuca’s dad and Carina showed up in the closing seconds tonight, right when DeLuca was bringing Meredith back to his place. As for what he wants, that’s still to be seen … but it can’t be good. While there may be more luggage to unpack here, it feels clear to us that DeLuca went to Seattle in order to escape his past, and not to be forced to stare it in the face once more.

Why is Alex’s mom back?

Is it really for just a visit, one that she struggled to make? This entire storyline was a little bit odd, even if it was great to have Lindsay Wagner back. She turned up at the party after some confusion and soon after that, was the first person to suspect a fire. Alex first took this as a sign that she was starting to become unstable, but it turns out that she may have been the most lucid person in the entire room.

There’s still something more to explore here, and while we’re not going to take any bets, it’s been a while since there were any tests in the Jo – Alex relationship. (Who else smiled when Alex and Meredith introduced each other to Alex’s mom as best friends? #FriendshipGoals forever there.)

CarterMatt Verdict

Even though “We Didn’t Start the Fire” was technically an episode about Catherine, it really didn’t put the focus on her all that much beyond her making it clear that she wanted all future parties to involve fast food, fancy drinks, and the back of a limousine. This was mostly about characters either starting metaphorical fires or finding new ways to put them out. It was a perfect celebration of all things Grey’s Anatomy — struggles, happy moments, and reminders that life is messy. Just like in the emergency room, you have to be prepared for anything.